Bunn MCU Single Cup Brewer Review

The Bunn MCU single cup brewer brings a versatile and practical cup-by-cup brewing solution to your kitchen counter. Unlike some coffee makers, the My Café can brew coffee from nearly any of the options on the market; a K-cup, a brewing pod, or your own freshly ground coffee. What does this mean for you? Well, you can use the same single cup coffee maker for a quick pod or k-cup when you’re on the run or for that home-roasted bean on a Saturday morning when there’s time to pull out the grinder.

Appearance

Bunn designs its coffee makers for industrial and commercial settings. There are no color choices here; the machine is available in a single, easy-clean, industrial style. It combines a basic metal finish with black plastic, and has a small footprint, making it a good choice for a smaller kitchen, or enabling you to save space in a larger kitchen. While small, it’s sturdy, and with Bunn’s name behind it, you can expect that this coffee maker will last you for years to come.

With a simple and practical appearance, it’s probably not the machine you’ll choose if aesthetics is your first consideration, but it offers a number of advantages for any kitchen, if function is a key criterion for you.

Functionality

Function is where Bunn shines, overall, and the My Café is no exception. The Bunn My Café comes with four interchangeable brewing heads, called drawers. There’s one for coffee pods, one for K-Cups, one for ground coffee, and one that lets you simply use the My Café to produce a quick cup of hot water.

Check out this video review of the Bunn MCU single serve coffee maker.

To use the My Café, plug in the machine and it’ll begin heating right away. Bunn relies on an internal hot water chamber to heat the water for your coffee. This isn’t the water you’re brewing with, but rather a separate chamber you’ll only need to fill occasionally, and your My Café will tell you when it needs water.

You’ll see a lit, red button. When it’s ready to use, the light will change from red to green. Load the drawer you want into the machine with a pod, cup or your own ground coffee. The drawers for the pods and K-cups simply hold the pod or cup, while a mesh filter holds your coffee grounds. Simply add two scoops of your favorite coffee to brew from your own ground coffee.

Fill your mug with water from the sink and pour it into the pot. The My Café doesn’t have space to store water, so you’ll fill it for every cup. This means there’s no sitting water to become stale, and lets you customize the amount of water for your mug, or your preferred brewing strength.

There are only two buttons on the front of the machine; Brew and Pulse. Brew is the standard choice, while pulse slows down the brewing process for a stronger cup of coffee.

The Bunn My Café has a short learning curve; you may need to double check the manual to understand the meaning of the blinking lights. The light blinks green if you need to add water, and blinks red if it needs to heat back up. Flashing red and green lights mean that you didn’t get your drawer clicked in properly.

There’s another big benefit to the Bunn My Café. When you’re in a rush, this machine produces a single-cup faster than any of the other brewers on the market; it puts your 8 oz. cup of coffee in your hand in a quick 42 seconds.

Cleaning

In normal day-to-day use, the Bunn wipes down easily to keep it tidy, and doesn’t create much mess. There’s a slight risk of overspray during the final splutter to finish your cup, but it isn’t common. The drip tray and all heads are top-rack dishwasher safe. Bunn recommends deep cleaning every few months. Simply run 14 oz. of vinegar through the machine, then rinse by running three to four cycles of clean water through it.

The Best of this Brewer

For the price, we love this coffee maker. It’s versatile, letting you use any of the great coffee products on the market to brew a cup. You can opt for convenience or for coffee quality. In addition, this versatility comes at a lower price point than comparable pots, keeping an additional $30.00 in your pocket.

The Worst of this Brewer

There’s not much to dislike about the Bunn My Café. If you’re committed to a coffee maker in your favorite color, or you’re looking for a distinct look, the simple appearance of the Bunn My Café may not appeal to you.